Fiancé visas for gays

ARVIN Antonio and Mark Harrison opt for a civil partnership in the United Kingdom.

Same-sex marriage is a hot issue in the United States and Europe. President Barack Obama has given it his open support.

A Filipino gay in the United Kingdom now openly tells his story on his marriage.

Arvin Antonio-Harrison, a 34-year-old Filipino, met his husband, Mark Harrison, 44, in Dubai four years ago through a common friend who set them up for a date.

“I think it was really love at first sight. Since our first date, we never dated anybody, until we decided to get ‘married,’” he retells.

Since the two had different citizenships, they needed to legalize their relationship so Arvin could stay in the United Kingdom.

“Although I didn’t look at it as an opportunity to get a UK visa, we both thought that it was the right time to get married as we were not getting any younger and we wanted a normal life with each other. Yes, like other married couples,” he adds.

Arvin left Dubai with a fiancé visa which would eventually pave the way for his naturalization.

Arvin and Mark tied the knot at the Mansfield Registry Office where the civil partnership (as they call it) ceremony took place on March 1, 2010.

Family acceptance

Arvin, the eldest and the only boy among the three siblings says he has been gay since he can remember.

“Even when I was young, I knew, I was different from other boys of my age,” he explains.

His family knew that he was into same-sex relationships.  When he was migrating to the UK, he did not tell his mother what kind of visa he had. He did not disclose their marriage plans to them.

“I told my sisters about it. I was reluctant to tell my parents. I was still considering the feelings of my father. It took me days to tell my mother after we were already married.”

Arvin’s parents were shocked when they learned the news. They knew he was bakla.

The family met Mark through Skype. Eventually, the family accepted the situation,” Arvin said.

Mark, he says, has accepted the Filipino trait of sending money home to the family.